Rotor & Wing Magazine :: Military :: Heavylift

A recent U.S. Army aviation conference served as a reminder that a prerequisite for such events is an eye exam. The event was one of several whose presentations feature the notorious "quad chart." This visual aid crams four Powerpoint-type slides into a single slide. Its widespread use indicates someone in...

U.S. Army aviation faces tough times ahead, and must face them without key proven leaders. The branch has prevailed in tough slogging, engaged as it has been in an intense level of combat operations in southwest Asia and in the global war on terror since 2001. Those battles will continue, but will be joined by ones of a different — and nearly as dangerous kind. The branch must fight for survival in...

Frank Piasecki, a pioneer of the tandem-rotor design, died Feb. 11 at his Haverford, Pa. home. He was 88. Born and raised in Philadelphia, he quickly developed an interest in vertical flight. He attended the University of Pennsylvani and earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from New York University. By 1940, Piasecki was an engineer at the...

Brownout remains one of the biggest concerns for helicopter operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. U.S. Army aircrews and leaders are forever on the search for new tips, techniques, and tools for avoiding or minimizing the hazard. One recurring complaint is...

Goodrich expects 2008 to bring a shift toward greater use of health and usage monitoring systems in commercial helicopters. Various forms of such systems are finding greater use on military aircraft, driven in part by U.S. Army efforts to reduce helicopter...

International efforts to dramatically improve helicopter safety face a fundamental challenge: no one can state definitively the safety level of operations today. The benchmark of aviation safety discussions is the safety rate, i.e. accidents (or incidents) per some standard...

One of the best parts of running Rotor & Wing is the chance to step back every now and then and take in the "Big Picture" of the helicopter industry. This latest edition of our Annual Reports special section offers such a chance. Read through this collection of views from the industry’s top executives of prospects and challenges for the coming months and you’ll find confirmation...

The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has picked an advanced-technology solutions firm to develop an acoustic small-arms detection system for helicopters. The agency awarded a $3.6...

An international coalition is urging helicopter operators to adopt safety management systems as a means of improving rotorcraft safety. The International Helicopter Safety Team, launched in 2005 to cut helicopter...

The U.S. Air Force has retired the MH-53M Pave Low 4 number 68-10928, a special forces helicopter involved in the last U.S. combat action in Southeast Asia. Aircraft 928 on May 15, 1975 carried U.S. Marines...

Respect for the Pilot I have the utmost respect for the Vietnam War-era pilot. His ability to get the job done in the face of the worst conditions imaginable is legendary. But is this "mission at any cost" attitude compatible with the needs of emergency medical services (EMS)? Looking at reports from the accidents in the past few decades would seem to indicate that it is not. In my few years of...

The majority of LEE BENSON’S SAR search and rescue operations occurred during his 26 -year career with the Los Angeles County Fire Dept. Additionally, in 1981 he flew for the Life Flight program in Indianapolis. But Lee observes that all helicopter pilots, regardless of their main mission, have done and continue to do lifesaving work as it is encountered in their day-to-day operations. STEVE...

MILITARY The U.K. Defence Ministry has commissioned a study of how the workload on helicopter pilots may be reduced. CORDA, a consulting firm wholly owned by BAE Systems, is working in partnership with AgustaWestland and Qinetiq. The study is one of eight covered by a three-year Maritime Surface Effects...

You may not have seen much in the news about manpads and Iraq, but U.S. military officials and defense analysts are increasingly concerned about that threat to helicopters operating there. The concern is that Iraqi insurgents...

Eight Boeing CH-47 Chinook HC3s grounded by the U.K. in 2001 and placed in storage could be flying by 2009, according to the Defence ministry’s defence news. The aircraft had been purchased to support soldiers in Afghanistan...

Sikorsky Aircraft has selected a filtration system manufactured by the Donaldson Company, Minneapolis, Minn. for the Sikorsky CH-53K heavy lift program. The new platform will permit the U.S. Marine Corps to fly in remote...

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